The 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs

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It is finally May, and that means that the NHL playoffs are underway. Sixteen teams, eight from the Eastern Conference and eight from the Western, will compete to raise the Stanley Cup. The road to the Cup started on April 11, with three games to start off the 2018 postseason. The Minnesota Wild started off against the Winnipeg Jets, the Philadelphia Flyers faced the Pittsburgh Penguins, who are two-time defending Stanley-cup champions, and the Los Angeles Kings played the Vegas Golden Knights, the newest team in the league. Here is a breakdown of the 2018 NHL playoffs. (Note: Some wild-card teams may not be members of the divisions they are listed under. Their opponents, however, are members of their respective divisions)

Western Conference:

Central Division:

Nashville Predators (1) vs. Colorado Avalanche (WC2)

Winnipeg Jets (2) vs. Minnesota Wild (3)

Pacific Division:

Las Vegas Golden Knights (1) vs. Los Angeles Kings (WC1)

Anaheim Ducks (2) vs. San Jose Sharks (3)

Eastern Conference:

Atlantic Division:

Tampa Bay Lightning (1) vs. New Jersey Devils (WC2)

Boston Bruins (2) vs. Toronto Maple Leafs (3)

Metropolitan Division:

Washington Capitals (1) vs. Columbus Blue Jackets (WC1)

Pittsburgh Penguins (2) vs. Philadelphia Flyers (3)

The playoffs have some unbelievable moments, from the Knights sweeping the Kings, Filip Forsberg’s crazy goals, and more. Below is a chart of the league leaders at the end of the regular season.

(Note: An* indicates a player whose team played in the 2018 playoffs. Statistics do not account for playoff games, only the regular season. Stats are according to NHL.com)

Category

Player Name, Position (Team) – Number

Points (Goals + Assists)

Connor McDavid, C (EDM) – 108

Claude Giroux*, C (PHI) – 102

Nikita Kucherov*, RW (TBL) – 100

Goals

Alex Ovechkin*, LW (WSH) – 49

Patrik Laine*, RW (WPG) – 44

William Karlsson*, C (VGK) – 43

Assists

Claude Giroux*, C (PHI) – 68

Blake Wheeler*, RW (WPG) – 68

Connor McDavid, C (EDM) – 67

Save Percentage (Applies to Goalies)

Carter Hutton, (STL) – .931

Antti Raanta, (ARI) – .930

Roberto Luongo (FLA) & Corey Crawford (CHI) – .929

Goals Against Average (Applies to Goalies)

Carter Hutton, (STL) – 2.09

Antti Raanta, (ARI) – 2.24

Marc-Andre Fleury*, (VGK) – 2.24

The Stanley Cup Playoffs has featured some saves, dangles, goals, and plays. One lucky team will be able to raise the cup when it is all said and done.